< PreviousAdvanced Electro-Mobility Manufacturing Keeps Breaking Its Own Records here’s an entire electro- mobility ecosystem rapidly taking shape in the United States. Kansas is central to that system in more ways than one. The Semiconductor Association of America documented over 50 projects, more than $210 billion in proposed investment and more than 44,000 affiliated jobs announced between May 2020 and April 2023. Three of those projects are in the Sunflower State cities of Manhattan (home to Kansas State University), Wichita (home to by ADAM BRUNS T EV BATTERIES & MICROELECTRONICS 48 KANSAS: THE NEW GOLD STANDARD A $4 billion, 4,000-job lithium-ion battery manufacturing plant from Panasonic Energy continues to go vertical in De Soto. Rendering courtesy of PanasonicKANSAS: THE NEW GOLD STANDARD 49 Wichita State University) and …. Burlington? That community, tucked between Coffey County Lake and John Redmond Reservoir at the halfway point between Kansas City and Wichita just south of I-35, is positioned to receive the biggest chip-related investment in Kansas thus far: a $1.9 billion, 1,200-job manufacturing facility from EMP Shield, pending support from the federal Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors (CHIPS) Act. EMP Shield, known for protecting electronic devices from destructive magnetic pulses, plans to build a secure campus on a 300-acre site where it will be joined by six out-of-state suppliers bringing another 1,000 jobs to Coffey County. “Bringing economic prosperity to every corner of the state — particularly rural Kansas — has been a priority since my very first day in office,” Governor Laura Kelly said in February 2023. She cited the passage of new federal incentives that strengthen rural America. “We achieve that with this project, creating thousands of high-paying jobs that don’t require a four-year degree and proving that every Kansas community is ripe for investment and growth.” Even with federal funding hanging in the balance, the project broke ground in September 2023. The announcement instantly became the second-largest private investment in Kansas history after Panasonic Energy’s March 2022 commitment of $4 billion toward a new 4,000-job lithium-ion battery manufacturing plant in De Soto on the outskirts of Kansas City. Yet another project held that “second largest” crown for a whole eighteen days before the EMP Shield news: Employee-owned Integra Technologies on February 2, 2023, announced plans to invest $1.8 billion and create nearly 2,000 new jobs at an average salary of $51,000 at a new integrated semiconductor manufacturing complex in Wichita. “The semiconductors we work on are in multiple space applications, such as the Mars Rover and Hubble Telescope; more than 100 Department of Defense programs of record; as well as commercial applications that power everyday life,” said Integra Technologies President and CEO Brett Robinson. “On behalf of our employee- owners, we are especially grateful for Governor Kelly, Lieutenant Governor Toland, and Kansas legislative leadership on the State Finance Council for supporting Integra with its premier economic development program, positioning us to transform domestic outsourced semiconductor assembly and test services while expanding in our home state.” ‘WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS ALREADY IN PLACE’ The successful effort with EMP Shield in Coffey County includes addressing the CHIPS Act’s requirement of private- public partnerships as well as the involvement of higher education institutions. The company has been working with area partners such as Flint Hills Technical College; Allen County Community College; Pittsburg State University; the University of Kansas; Heartland 50 KANSAS: THE NEW GOLD STANDARD Black Chamber of Commerce; Wichita Hispanic Chamber of Commerce; and Unified School Districts 243, 244 and 245. Bus routes will even be established to transport workers from larger metro areas to the Burlington site, where the average wage of those 1,200 jobs was projected to be $66,000. “There are workforce development programs already in place that will enable high school graduates and those with two-year degrees to train up and get very high-paying jobs,” EMP Shield Founder and Lead Engineer Tim Carty said at the announcement. “This will allow those who grow up here to stay in Kansas, enjoy our quality of life, and not have to go to San Francisco.” When Site Selection magazine’s Mark Arend interviewed Governor Kelly after the state won the publication’s 2022 Governor’s Cup for most private sector investment per capita, she gave credit to the Kansas Legislature for passing in February 2022 the Attracting Powerful Economic Expansion (APEX) Act designed to land megaprojects. After Panasonic’s investment, she said, there were nine megaproject companies “knocking on our door.” Integra qualified for APEX designation. The APEX program provides tax incentives to qualified firms who agree to invest at least $1 billion in Kansas within a five-year period and to no more than five of the qualified firm’s qualified suppliers. Meanwhile, the first recipient of APEX incentives — that $4 billion project from Panasonic Energy in De Soto — proceeds apace. The company in March 2023 selected Turner Construction Company and Yates Construction to build the advanced manufacturing facility. The first steel went vertical in April. The plant is expected to begin production by the end of March 2025 and will eventually reach approximately 30 GWh of annual production capacity. EMP Shield leaders and state leaders in February 2023 announced the company would invest $1.9 billion and create 1,200 jobs at a new manufacturing facility in Burlington, in Coffey County. Photo courtesy of the office of Governor Laura Kellyn the year since Panasonic Energy broke ground on its $4 billion lithium-ion battery facility near Kansas City — the biggest economic development project in Kansas history — the state’s manufacturing sector has continued to build momentum. It’s growth atop a solid foundation. Kansas is home to more than 2,500 manufacturers employing an estimated 165,000 workers, more than 11% of the state’s workforce. Panasonic is joining a roster of global heavyweights that include General Motors, Ford Motor Co., Johnson Controls, Pfizer, Newell Rubbermaid and Honeywell that have chosen to locate manufacturing operations in Kansas. Manufacturers seek the Kansas advantage . by GARY DAUGHTERS I KANSAS: THE NEW GOLD STANDARD 51 ADVANCED MANUFACTURING Made with Brains and Muscle GM’s Fairfax Assembly & Stamping plant will be retooled for EV production. Photo courtesy of General Motors52 KANSAS: THE NEW GOLD STANDARD In November, news of another major EV investment emerged. Negotiations that served to end the 46-day United Auto Workers strike produced an agreement by GM to pump nearly $400 million into its Fairfax Assembly & Stamping plant near Kansas City to retool it for an unnamed electric vehicle, widely reported to be a new Chevy Bolt. The plant, which currently produces the Chevrolet Malibu and Cadillac XT4, ranks No. 4 on the Kansas City Business Journal’s list of area manufacturers, based on 2,229 local full-time-equivalent employees. The UAW agreement also contained a pledge from Ford to invest $1 billion in its Kansas City Assembly plant in nearby Claycomo, Missouri. Both investments underscore the manner in which manufacturers that locate in the region tend to expand there. Another example: Johnson Controls announced plans in November to hire an additional 600 workers to produce heat pumps at its plant in Wichita. ATTRACTION AND RETENTION Recent repeat investors include manufacturers both domestic and foreign that make products ranging from foods and beverages, chemicals and plastics, heavy machinery and avionics to semiconductors and other electronics. Michelin, which operates two manufacturing locations in Emporia, recently announced plans to expand its other Kansas facility in Junction City, an hour west of Topeka. The $100 million investment illustrates the powerful synergy between the state’s signature manufacturing and agricultural sectors; it’s to support increased production of rubber tracks for heavy farm equipment. An estimated 200 new positions at Michelin’s Junction City plant will more than double the facility’s workforce by 2026, the company says. “As a thriving hub for manufacturing and logistics, the Kansas City region is a highly attractive choice for innovative companies to locate their operations,” said Chris Gutierrez, president of KC SmartPort, which facilitates major industrial projects. “With the most central location in the U.S., available real estate options and access to more than 190,000 skilled industrial workers, KC continues to stake its claim in the attraction of industrial innovation,” Gutierrez said. Developed by surrounding Johnson County in partnership with VanTrust Real Estate, New Century Commerce Center is one of many examples of how logistics providers support manufacturing across Kansas, leveraging the state’s position at the geographic heart of the United States. Charlotte Pipe and Foundry Company, a top manufacturer of cast iron and plastic pipe and fittings, cited the state’s strategic location in announcing plans to build an $80 million manufacturing facility in the town of Maize in suburban Wichita. “Maize is ideally located in the center of the “ With the most central location in the U.S., available real estate options and access to more than 190,000 skilled industrial workers, KC continues to stake its claim in the attraction of industrial innovation. ” — Chris Gutierrez, President, KC SmartPortKANSAS: THE NEW GOLD STANDARD 53 country to help us better serve our customers. It is also a fast-growing, business-friendly community with an excellent workforce we can draw from to staff our new plant,” said Hooper Hardison, CEO of Charlotte Pipe and Foundry. A STATE THAT SUPPORTS Governor Laura Kelly, in an interview with Site Selection magazine’s Ron Starner, identified workforce development as one of her top three priorities related to business attraction and retention. Launched in 2023 under the direction of the Kansas Department of Commerce, the ALOFT (Aviation Learning Opportunities & Funded Training) program already is providing support to the state’s workhorse aviation and aerospace industries. “Training upskilled Kansans to better align with emerging technologies in this sector is critical,” said Lieutenant Governor and Commerce Secretary David Toland. “ALOFT funding is designed to maintain our best-in-class status.” Kansas is currently home to more than 450 aviation companies that generate a whopping 4% of the state’s gross domestic product. ALOFT funding can be put toward uses that include construction of on-site training facilities, training equipment, trainers’ salaries and youth training services. Also supported by the Department of Commerce, the new Made in Kansas initiative is designed to promote Kansas manufacturers to potential customers around the world. An initial 12 manufacturers were admitted into the program in November from across the state, including in small and medium-sized communities like Baldwin City, Garden Plain, Ellsworth and Paola. Certified manufacturers have access to an exclusive Made in Kansas seal to feature on packaging, products and promotional materials. “Having a Made in Kansas logo on products lets customers know they are purchasing excellence, reliability and consistency,” Program Manager Corrie Ann Campbell said. “Our manufacturers embody the Kansas work ethic, which is honed by more than 160 years of pioneering spirit and commitment to workmanship.” 54 KANSAS: THE NEW GOLD STANDARD t would be virtually impossible to live in the Wichita region and not know people who work in the aerospace industry. Kansas’ biggest metro, with nearly 400,000 residents, is home to Boeing, Spirit Aerosystems, Textron Aviation (producer of Cessna, Hawker and Beechcraft aircraft), Airbus and Bombardier Learjet. Those are just the big names. The Air Capital of the World is also home to more than 450 suppliers. These include LMI Aerospace, Collins Aerospace and Cadence Aerospace. According to the Aerospace Industries Association (AIA), aerospace and defense companies in Kansas employed 65,152 in 2021 — 34,423 in direct employment and 30,729 in supply chain employment. AIA says the sector’s economic output in 2021 was more than $24 billion; it contributed 5.36% of the state’s total GDP. Not all aerospace companies in Kansas are in the Wichita metro. In October 2022, Pinnacle Aerospace, LLC, announced a $14.7 million plant in Wellington, 30 miles south of Wichita and close enough to take advantage of its industry cluster assets. The project will create 155 new jobs. Scott Brown, president of Pinnacle Aerospace, credited the area’s in-place workforce as the main location driver. Back in Wichita, Mid-Continent Instruments and Avionics will expand its headquarters by 28,000 sq. ft. at Jabara Airport, a general aviation airport northeast of the city. by MARK AREND I How Kansas Keeps Its Aviation Industry Aloft AEROSPACE & DEFENSE The Beechcraft King Air 360ER is manufactured at Textron Aviation’s East Campus in Wichita. Photo courtesy of Textron Aviation, Inc.KANSAS: THE NEW GOLD STANDARD 55 “We invest heavily in research and development to propel our industry forward,” said Todd Winter, president and CEO of Mid-Continent Instruments and Avionics, at the announcement. “Expanding our company allows us to grow our manufacturing facilities, in-house design, testing capabilities and engineering department. This will attract new talent and add well-paying aviation jobs in the Air Capital.” Quickstep, an Australian maker of aerospace composites, has picked Wichita as the location for its fi rst U.S. manufacturing and engineering facility. “The state government offered a compelling investment case to choose Kansas as a competitive, high-quality location for aerospace business operations with a depth of technical capability, potential partners and market opportunities,” explained Quickstep Managing Director Mark Burgess in a release. AVIATION CLUSTER ASSETS Wichita has one of the highest concentrations of engineers in the U.S. at roughly 11,000. That’s a huge draw for aerospace companies like Airbus, which in 2017 opened its Airbus Americas Engineering Center on Wichita State University’s (WSU) Innovation Campus. Textron Aviation and Spirit Aerosystems are among other aerospace- related Innovation Campus partners. Also in Wichita is the National Center for Aviation Training on the WSU Campus of Applied Sciences and Technology. WSU’s National Institute for Aviation Research (NIAR) can also be found on the WSU Tech’s campus and at other locations in Wichita. It employs 1,400 and occupies 12 million sq. ft. of offi ce and lab space. NIAR areas of expertise include aerodynamics, composites and advanced materials, fl ight simulation, structural testing and wind tunnel testing, among others. In addition to Jabara Airport, where Embraer and Cessna operate service centers, Wichita’s Dwight D. Eisenhower National Airport is the metro’s commercial airport. It’s also Textron Aviation’s headquarters and the location of one of its major general aviation MRO facilities. In October, the Kansas Department of Commerce offi cially recognized Textron’s two-year Maintenance and Paint Apprenticeship programs as state registered. “Textron Aviation has long been committed to building educational and community collaborations that benefi t our employees, company, region and the State of Kansas, particularly in developing a skilled workforce that maintains our advantage in a competitive, global market,” said Maggie Topping, senior vice president, Human Resources and Communications, in Textron Aviation’s news release. “These apprenticeships are another way we provide employees a solid foundation for success and ongoing support throughout their careers. Participants not only gain valuable education and training, but they also receive a salary and benefi ts while they learn.” Five Wichita aerospace entities, the Salina Airport Authority and an Olathe-based aerostructures manufacturer were awarded nearly $20 million cumulatively in June for aviation workforce development programs through the Department of Commerce’s Aviation Learning Opportunities & Funded Training (ALOFT) program. It’s another example of how Kansas is investing in its aerospace and defense workforce to keep Kansas at the forefront of this critical and globally competitive industry. 56 KANSAS: THE NEW GOLD STANDARD o you ever wonder where your pet’s food, treats and medications come from? Most likely, they come from the Kansas City Animal Health Corridor. Encompassing a 250-mile stretch from Manhattan, Kansas, to Columbia, Missouri, there are more than 300 animal health- related companies, including many of the industry’s most trusted brands. Household names such as Hill’s Pet Nutrition, Merck Animal Health, Simmons Pet Food, Big Heart Pet Brands and Sparhawk Laboratories run operations throughout the corridor. This network of researchers, veterinarians, engineers, scientists and manufacturers is home to the largest concentration of animal health companies in the world, employing more than 14,000 people and accounting for 56% of global animal health, diagnostics and pet food sales. A FEAST FOR FIDO For 75 years, Hill’s Pet Nutrition has reaped the benefits of basing its operations in Kansas. The global pioneer in science- led pet nutrition runs multiple locations throughout the corridor, including two new facilities that opened in 2023. At the beginning of the year, Hill’s relocated its global and U.S. headquarters to Aspiria in the Kansas City suburb of Overland Park. The company extensively searched the Midwest region to find the perfect place for this project. Key attributes such as its centralized location, major metro and proximity to Kansas City International Airport marked Overland Park as the top contender From treats to treatments, Kansas keeps bowls and bellies full worldwide. by LINDSAY LOPP D INNOVATION UNLEASHED ANIMAL HEALTH Photo: Getty Images KANSAS: THE NEW GOLD STANDARD 57 for the company’s new home. In addition to this move, Hill’s celebrated the grand opening of yet another manufacturing site in the Sunflower State last October. The company already operates its Pet Nutrition Center in Topeka, a 170-acre research and development campus in North Topeka, and a plant in Emporia. Hill’s new facility in Tonganoxie, though, is designed differently than its predecessors. “It’s only appropriate that as we celebrate Hill’s 75th anniversary, we are able to unveil the next chapter of smart manufacturing innovation in the pet food industry,” said John Hazlin, president and CEO of Hill’s Pet Nutrition. “The Hill’s Tonganoxie plant helps set the stage for the continued growth of our science- led nutrition, increasing our capacity and our ability to better serve the evolving needs of pets and pet owners in the United States and around the world.” Located on more than 80 acres at the Tonganoxie Business Park, the 365,000-sq.-ft. plant has been dubbed a “smart factory” due to its high-tech features such as enhanced food safety systems, automation and robotic devices, artificial intelligence to power a digital food safety vigilance system, and end-to-end digital process/safety monitoring. “Hill’s will utilize technology to work alongside Hill’s staff and a new state-of-the-art mission control center to provide unprecedented visibility and monitoring through every aspect of pet food making from ingredient intake to final packaging,” said Chad Sharp, director of manufacturing for the Tonganoxie plant. “The production process is an entirely enclosed system from ingredient mixing to cooking and container filling — designed to prevent food exposure to environmental contaminants.” With this new technology, Hill’s aims to shorten the production cycle and improve speed to market for more than 170 varieties of wet pet food. Since its opening, the plant received a LEED Gold certification, making it the first site to achieve that standard within the Colgate-Palmolive company, and it created 100 jobs in Leavenworth County. Tonganoxie’s access to a diverse talent pool was among the many reasons Hill’s chose to expand in the city. The company also listed its excellent location, strong community and proximity to distributors and suppliers as influencing factors. “ The pet food industry has been looking for a better source for the highest quality, traceable and reliable nutritional ingredients for their products, and we are thrilled to be able to deliver for the industry and for ‘pet parents’ with this new facility in Tonganoxie. ” — Dimitri de Vreeze, Co-CEO, DSMNext >